It’s been 254 days since the release of the debut studio album ‘Indigo’ by RM of BTS. And, ever since the day it was out, I have been obsessed with Track 5 of the album, ‘Closer’. The alternative R&B track features Korean-Canadian rapper Paul Blanco and British singer-songwriter Mahalia along with the rapper himself. One of the producers and co-writers of this song HONNE, have other amazing collaborations with RM such as ‘Crying over You’ and my favorite song ‘seoul’ from RM’s previous solo mixtape, mono.
When I tell you this song is crack cocaine, it is. The texture, composition, and feel of this song are unlike any else. It eases and flows through the different styles of the three artists but captures the beauty of romanticism like none other.
The song starts with the cold and low lines of Mahalia that talk about the feeling of yearning one has for a certain someone.
I feel it most in the nighttime
Even though that’s when I’m closest to you
If I could be under your skin
Closer than we’ve ever been
Most of the partners find it best to connect at night, talking on long calls, lying beside each other, making love, The night is the most enchanting to fall in love with someone. The craving for a person’s love, a person’s touch is heightened in the isolation of the night.
Wanna lock you up in my sight
But you run away like fish, yеah
RM starts his rap by emphasizing how the craving is felt the most at night. They are all you see, but you might not even be on their social media timeline. When I am falling for a person I met, they are all I think about. I daydream about the person, I crave for them, and I always wonder ‘Do they think about me too? Do they open my chats, or my social media, and have the urge to talk to me like I do?’. The possessiveness seeps in to keep this person to myself and not share them with anyone.
I keep you right next to me
Only just in my dream
I see you in red, blue, green
Don’t wake me up from sleep
Sometimes the feeling of love, the craving you have for a person is so strong, that it goes beyond words. They are so close but you hesitate to reach out to them, and hence you just keep them in your dreams. They reciprocate your urges in your dreams, they are so vivid in your imagination, it’s not black and white anymore. You never want to come out of this fever dream, it’s too good to be true.
After the chorus comes the most addicting part of the song in my opinion. Paul’s voice is so rich and light, and in this section, he confesses the urges that were being sugar-coated till now.
But the time gon’ stop
When you and I make our lips lock baby
And once again, you made me
Misplace my pride, baby
Promised myself never again
But you got me doing
You know somewhere deep down, there’s the fear, the anxiety, the chance that this might not work. You control your urges, you keep your feelings to yourself, but the more you look at them, it keeps coming back to you. Like you can’t stop yourself from falling in love.
If love ain’t for us
I’ll be content with this
I don’t need your touch
I’m okay as long as it’s your love
The bridge has an Interlude that says, ‘Please leave a message after the beep’. I interpret this as an incident when this person who you talk to every night one day does not pick up your call and the call goes to voicemail. So you are reminded by the harsh reality that maybe, this won’t go any further than what you already have. I find it interesting how the entire song is in English and so are the first and third lines of the bridge. It’s a way of saying if this love isn’t for us, I don’t need you. But the second and fourth line that continues to speak that you will still long for that person and you want to settle for the platonic love you might get back is enough for you to get by is masked in Korean. It’s as if it is intended to hide their craving and not tell it to the other person so that it doesn’t drive them away.
If this is all we can do
Yeah just lookin’ at you
There’s gon’ be no take two
Stay where you are
You don’t want to lose what you have and you want to remind yourself that if this is what you get, then you are happy with it. You don’t want more and it’s okay to stay here, just how you both are.
Stay where you are
Just stay where you are
Stay where you are
The song ends with them pleading with the other person to stay. It’s an unfaithful promise that things are the same between them, but you know one feels more. But the thought of losing the other is more terrifying so you plead the other person to stay, just stay where you are. It’s a cry that you’ll come to terms with your feelings so just stay. We’ll figure this out.
This song captures a lot. Unrequited love, failed love, love which is not greater than a friendship you share, forbidden love where you fall in love with someone you aren’t supposed to. With a lot of emotions, a mix of different artists that seamlessly blend, and an intricate storytelling of a bound-to-fail bond, this song is a gem of its own. One of the best releases by RM so far.
…
Check out RM and BTS’ music here.
Credits to lyrics and translations go to Genius and Sel.
These are what I felt about the song, and apologizes for any misinterpretations. Thank you for reading!
